After looking through Descent into Avernus, two things struck me. 1: This adventure is awesome, and 2: Avernus itself is good, but there are some things that I personally think could use some improvements. When I'm running the adventure, I'll be doing a couple changes to some major locations. Tell me what you think, and, if you want to use it, tell me how it went, I'd love to hear.
Zariel's flying fortress: A pretty minor change. According to Mordenkainen's, Zariel has a massive fortress somewhere in Avernus, so the Flying Fortress is kind of a letdown. In my version, flying fortresses are more like mobile command centers that can dock to her actual fortress somewhere else in Avernus. Elturel's arrival has necessitated that her attention is focused here. In addition to the fortress seen in the adventure, three others are currently in operation, commanded by one of her generals and occupied with overseeing operations elsewhere in Avernus.
River Styx: The River Styx is pretty good as it's written in the book, targeting players that bathe in, drink or even touch its waters with a Feeblemind spell that becomes permanent if it's not cured within a month. It can be cured by the spells Greater Restoration or Heal, which the players shouldn't be able to get until about two thirds into the adventure. This means that any contact with the river in the early game will most likely incapacitate a PC permanently, unless the players return at a later date with the means to cure them. That's good, but I feel like we can do more to emphasize the truly eldritch nature of the Styx. This thing is as old as the Planes themselves, it feels kinda weak that a mid-level spell is enough to overcome it. The adventure also notes that water taken from the river looses its potency after a short while, suggesting that it's the river itself that's magical, not the water.
In my games, the River's magical effect is that it washes away memory and identity. If a PC is submerged in the river, they are subject to the Feeblemind effect permanently. Nothing short of Divine Intervention (or Wish, at your discretion) can restore them to their original state, although their stats may increase naturally over time as they relearn things they have forgotten, at your discretion. Being simply splashed by Stygian water, or bathing in it outside the river itself, has far less hazardous effects. PCs that are exposed to water away from the river will loose some of their treasured memories, but the memories may return over time. Their Int and Cha are decreased by 2d6 (or simply down to 10), and can be returned to normal via Greater Restoration or Heal. Spellcasting abilities are lost, as per the Feeblemind spell.
In the Stygian Dock part of the adventure, we are informed that the infernal legions scoop up souls from the Styx in order to use as fuel in their war machines and as delicacies. That is dumb. Unlike demons, the infernal legions are very much finite, and require the souls of mortals to replenish them. The idea that devils would consume souls as food, something even demons (according to Mordenkainen's) consider taboo, is simply idiotic. THEY DON'T EVEN EAT! Instead, I suggest that the stuff that actually fuel infernal war machines (at least those who usually run on souls) are the memories and identities lost in the Styx. When a soul ends up in Styx, it's stripped of its memories and identity, until it crawls out, tabula rasa, as a lemure or abyssal larva, while the memories and identities just float around in the water. The devils have found ways to exploit these memories for fun and profit.
Bleeding Citadel: I don't doubt the power of righteousness, but I'm also not fond of allowing NPCs do stuff that players can't just to suit the plot. The sacrifice of a single pious soul and a bit of hollyphant power does not seem like it'd be enough to create a citadel powerful enough to abjure hordes of demon lords. Maybe if Lulu was a more powerful celestial, like a Kirin, who's nor permanently stuck in a depowered form, but she's not. So instead, I'm saying that the Bleeding Citadel was already there when Zariel attacked Avernus. The Bleeding Citadel originally belonged to a god of... Something. I'm going with Fear, but you can decide for yourself. At some point long before the story, the god moved out, but much of their divine power remains, flowing through the halls of the citadel, making it so that any Outsider (celestials, aberrations, fiends, etc.) that comes too close is overcome by fear, ignoring any resistance to the Frightened condition. Only a demon lord, archdevil or god is powerful enough to overcome the protections, and neither Zariel, Asmodeus or Tiamat have any interest in what's contained within (the citadel is not protected from divinations, making it relatively easy for someone who knows what they're doing to figure out what's contained within).
In the slightly reworked backstory of the Citadel, when Yael and Lulu fled there with the sword, Lulu led them to the Citadel (she knew that it belonged to a god, but couldn't remember the specifics), the sword protecting her from the influence of the Citadel, and driving away the citadel's ethereal defenders. But when the sword was planted in the center of the Citadel, its protection was waned, and Lulu was overcome by dread, and fled. Yael died shortly after, either from her wounds or from the Citadel's defenders. In the aeons since, Yael's spirit has gained some amount of power over the Citadel, so when Lulu approaches alongside the characters, Yael can dampen the Fear effect just enough that Lulu won't be affected (either that, or she's protected by the Shield of the Hidden Lord from earlier in the adventure). She might also hold the Citadel's defenders back, you can decide if you want to make an entirely new dungeon for the Citadel, or if you just want to use the Scab from the adventure (the Scab is not necessary for the story, as the demon Crokek'toeck can be encountered anywhere else in Avernus). If the players claim the sword, it proceeds as written in the book.
If you think the Fear effect of the Citadel should affect mortals as well, the players might find other ways to overcome it. Maybe Yael lets them pass because they're with Lulu, or the Shield of the Hidden Lord protects them, or they might even strike a deal for protection with an archdevil (any except Zariel, obviously), demon lord, or even Tiamat or Asmodeus. A successful use of Divine Intervention from a cleric could also be sufficient to protect the entire party. In the unlikely case that the cleric worships the god who originally built the Citadel, I would treat their divine intervention roll as succeeding automatically.
I am okay with the flying fortress as it was written but if you dont think it's very impressive those are good suggestions.
I really like your changes to the river styx and the "soul fuel" quite a bit. And will steal them :D
The point about jamming plot devices in to make a story work is a good one regarding the Citadel. Personally I would like to keep the idea of a holy place scabbed over though. Maybe one of the gods of celestia knew, understood or wanted that their be a chance of redemption and the blood and hollyphant power were just a conduit for that god to place the chance. Maybe a character who happens to worship that god be given a vision, a divine quest to rescue Zariel? Too corny?
The point about jamming plot devices in to make a story work is a good one regarding the Citadel. Personally I would like to keep the idea of a holy place scabbed over though. Maybe one of the gods of celestia knew, understood or wanted that their be a chance of redemption and the blood and hollyphant power were just a conduit for that god to place the chance. Maybe a character who happens to worship that god be given a vision, a divine quest to rescue Zariel? Too corny?
Not as all, I was just throwing out suggestions to pick and choose from. I'm happy to hear that you liked my River Styx ideas. Full disclosure, I'm completely guilty of using deus ex machinas and divine intervention all the time
After looking through Descent into Avernus, two things struck me. 1: This adventure is awesome, and 2: Avernus itself is good, but there are some things that I personally think could use some improvements. When I'm running the adventure, I'll be doing a couple changes to some major locations. Tell me what you think, and, if you want to use it, tell me how it went, I'd love to hear.
Zariel's flying fortress: A pretty minor change. According to Mordenkainen's, Zariel has a massive fortress somewhere in Avernus, so the Flying Fortress is kind of a letdown. In my version, flying fortresses are more like mobile command centers that can dock to her actual fortress somewhere else in Avernus. Elturel's arrival has necessitated that her attention is focused here. In addition to the fortress seen in the adventure, three others are currently in operation, commanded by one of her generals and occupied with overseeing operations elsewhere in Avernus.
River Styx: The River Styx is pretty good as it's written in the book, targeting players that bathe in, drink or even touch its waters with a Feeblemind spell that becomes permanent if it's not cured within a month. It can be cured by the spells Greater Restoration or Heal, which the players shouldn't be able to get until about two thirds into the adventure. This means that any contact with the river in the early game will most likely incapacitate a PC permanently, unless the players return at a later date with the means to cure them. That's good, but I feel like we can do more to emphasize the truly eldritch nature of the Styx. This thing is as old as the Planes themselves, it feels kinda weak that a mid-level spell is enough to overcome it. The adventure also notes that water taken from the river looses its potency after a short while, suggesting that it's the river itself that's magical, not the water.
In my games, the River's magical effect is that it washes away memory and identity. If a PC is submerged in the river, they are subject to the Feeblemind effect permanently. Nothing short of Divine Intervention (or Wish, at your discretion) can restore them to their original state, although their stats may increase naturally over time as they relearn things they have forgotten, at your discretion. Being simply splashed by Stygian water, or bathing in it outside the river itself, has far less hazardous effects. PCs that are exposed to water away from the river will loose some of their treasured memories, but the memories may return over time. Their Int and Cha are decreased by 2d6 (or simply down to 10), and can be returned to normal via Greater Restoration or Heal. Spellcasting abilities are lost, as per the Feeblemind spell.
In the Stygian Dock part of the adventure, we are informed that the infernal legions scoop up souls from the Styx in order to use as fuel in their war machines and as delicacies. That is dumb. Unlike demons, the infernal legions are very much finite, and require the souls of mortals to replenish them. The idea that devils would consume souls as food, something even demons (according to Mordenkainen's) consider taboo, is simply idiotic. THEY DON'T EVEN EAT! Instead, I suggest that the stuff that actually fuel infernal war machines (at least those who usually run on souls) are the memories and identities lost in the Styx. When a soul ends up in Styx, it's stripped of its memories and identity, until it crawls out, tabula rasa, as a lemure or abyssal larva, while the memories and identities just float around in the water. The devils have found ways to exploit these memories for fun and profit.
Bleeding Citadel: I don't doubt the power of righteousness, but I'm also not fond of allowing NPCs do stuff that players can't just to suit the plot. The sacrifice of a single pious soul and a bit of hollyphant power does not seem like it'd be enough to create a citadel powerful enough to abjure hordes of demon lords. Maybe if Lulu was a more powerful celestial, like a Kirin, who's nor permanently stuck in a depowered form, but she's not. So instead, I'm saying that the Bleeding Citadel was already there when Zariel attacked Avernus. The Bleeding Citadel originally belonged to a god of... Something. I'm going with Fear, but you can decide for yourself. At some point long before the story, the god moved out, but much of their divine power remains, flowing through the halls of the citadel, making it so that any Outsider (celestials, aberrations, fiends, etc.) that comes too close is overcome by fear, ignoring any resistance to the Frightened condition. Only a demon lord, archdevil or god is powerful enough to overcome the protections, and neither Zariel, Asmodeus or Tiamat have any interest in what's contained within (the citadel is not protected from divinations, making it relatively easy for someone who knows what they're doing to figure out what's contained within).
In the slightly reworked backstory of the Citadel, when Yael and Lulu fled there with the sword, Lulu led them to the Citadel (she knew that it belonged to a god, but couldn't remember the specifics), the sword protecting her from the influence of the Citadel, and driving away the citadel's ethereal defenders. But when the sword was planted in the center of the Citadel, its protection was waned, and Lulu was overcome by dread, and fled. Yael died shortly after, either from her wounds or from the Citadel's defenders. In the aeons since, Yael's spirit has gained some amount of power over the Citadel, so when Lulu approaches alongside the characters, Yael can dampen the Fear effect just enough that Lulu won't be affected (either that, or she's protected by the Shield of the Hidden Lord from earlier in the adventure). She might also hold the Citadel's defenders back, you can decide if you want to make an entirely new dungeon for the Citadel, or if you just want to use the Scab from the adventure (the Scab is not necessary for the story, as the demon Crokek'toeck can be encountered anywhere else in Avernus). If the players claim the sword, it proceeds as written in the book.
If you think the Fear effect of the Citadel should affect mortals as well, the players might find other ways to overcome it. Maybe Yael lets them pass because they're with Lulu, or the Shield of the Hidden Lord protects them, or they might even strike a deal for protection with an archdevil (any except Zariel, obviously), demon lord, or even Tiamat or Asmodeus. A successful use of Divine Intervention from a cleric could also be sufficient to protect the entire party. In the unlikely case that the cleric worships the god who originally built the Citadel, I would treat their divine intervention roll as succeeding automatically.
Hey,
Thanks for sharing those ideas.
I am okay with the flying fortress as it was written but if you dont think it's very impressive those are good suggestions.
I really like your changes to the river styx and the "soul fuel" quite a bit. And will steal them :D
The point about jamming plot devices in to make a story work is a good one regarding the Citadel. Personally I would like to keep the idea of a holy place scabbed over though. Maybe one of the gods of celestia knew, understood or wanted that their be a chance of redemption and the blood and hollyphant power were just a conduit for that god to place the chance. Maybe a character who happens to worship that god be given a vision, a divine quest to rescue Zariel? Too corny?
Not as all, I was just throwing out suggestions to pick and choose from. I'm happy to hear that you liked my River Styx ideas. Full disclosure, I'm completely guilty of using deus ex machinas and divine intervention all the time